Just moved to Richmond from Florida. I've spent the last couple seasons hunting around the space coast in Central Florida. Does anyone have any suggestions on what areas are good to hunt in central VA? Looking to do some early teal. Any advice would be appreciated.

Welcome to VA.& the Va board!Just had a friend move down to Fl. Melbourn to be exact.... He said that it's a teal macca.Put your time in scouting/talking, study yer maps and read the DGIF game laws. Takes time to get your feet wet but there are places to kill a few birds!! Good Luck!

What side of Richmond are you on and do you have a boat ? East of I 95 we have blind laws and one will have a real hard time of finding a spot to hunt on the rivers or anywhere near a boat ramp . Plus most hunters in the blind law side are going to be tight-lip about where when and what so your best bet is to spend your time on this board making friends more so then asking for info about a X to hunt . to the board .http://www.dgif.virginia.gov/wildlife/waterfowl/

LD

A Market Hunter born 100 years to late:)/\__________<*)((((>{The hardest thing a duck hunter in Va. has to do is to Not read more into the blind laws then what is in black and white . Lewdog 1999http://www.vawfa.org

The only birds we have in VA are on the eastern shore. Those guys up there welcome all people to hunt their property.

On a serious note, wecome to the commonwealth. We have many different laws than in florida and other parts of the country, so the advice offered by the others to become extremely familar with the game laws is 100% true. Spend some time on the boards to get general information and talk to the DGIF guys. They can and will offer as much help as possible.

Good luck and please stay 500 yards away from the blinds west of I95.

CheersDave

Big Iron's new best friend. If anyone wants an 8x10 autographed glossy picture of us together, just let us know.I'm thinking about starting another chapter of Northern VA Delta Waterfail with my best friends up here.

Also.... not knowing what form of eq. you brought with you... A waterfowling offering is to sign on for our VA. quota hunt system. You can find it on our DGIF website, it will guide you thru several places across the state that allow hunting ...thru a draw system. Most locations allow you to take a friend along if you get drawn. Some spots, like Hog Island are walk in and can be very worth your effort. We also have a new WMA over on the Eastern Shore Doe Creek WMA, new to the Quota system, may be a great spot to try. Hope this helps & if you have questions... just ask away, good group of guys here that "know the ropes" when it comes to killing ducks in Va. Even if many on here will not admit it

Anyone that tells you there are no ducks in VA is either lying or a poor outdoorsman who is too lazy to put forth time and effort. Take advantage of our wildlife management areas in Amelia and Powhatan and work to build a network here of fellow waterfowlers through DU events, etc. Don't be afraid to knock on some doors and scout on your own. As far as teal go, that will require the next level of scouting and perhaps a guide service if you really want to get after it quickly. Good luck and don't hesitate to pm anyone on here for further details.

If you go to Powhatan WMA you'll see a good amount of wood ducks in the early season. Not much after that. At Amelia WMA, the ducks never showed last year. Wasn't worth the time going there. Might be different this year.

Good luck! Moved down to Richmond last year and it has been just taking time to scout and knock on a few doors. Have made nice and been invited as well. Duck hunting here is different then deer since we have so many rules to follow and ghost blind owners!

“Heaven to me is endless cypress swamps and hardwood forests loaded with game and ducks and not a game warden around!” -Phil Robertson

Yep. The more, the merrier. Here's another piece of advice: go to the upper lake. Once you launch head all the way to the end. Theres a narrow passage that allows access to the swamp behind the lake. Enjoy.